


Deal with the Devil

by dancey94



Category: Hannibal (TV)
Genre: Deal with a Devil, Death, Deception, Devil, Devil!Hannibal, Going to Hell, Hell, Imagination, Kissing, M/M, Seduction, Slow Burn, Temptation
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-08-09
Updated: 2017-08-11
Packaged: 2018-12-12 08:08:09
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings, Major Character Death
Chapters: 2
Words: 8,719
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11733030
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/dancey94/pseuds/dancey94
Summary: Will's soul belongs to the Devil now and he can either join the ruler of Hell or remain in the limbo.





	1. Sold

**Author's Note:**

  * For [Polanetta](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Polanetta/gifts), [Laemear](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Laemear/gifts), [Jujuka](https://archiveofourown.org/users/Jujuka/gifts).



Will woke up in his bed. It was unusually soft and comfy, making the decision of leaving it all the more difficult. It was his eighteenth birthday and his wish was to stay in his house forever. The world was never easy on Will: his classmates made fun of him, his teachers were afraid of him and scolded him for everything because of that, his father was rarely there for him. The story of mister Graham was a strange one and Will thought it should be told to kids to make them believe they could do anything.

Will’s father was a poor uneducated man who was left with a child at the age of thirty. He had to make a living, not only for himself but also for his son. The one thing mister Graham knew well was engines and how they worked. He moved along with his son from one town to another, getting whatever job he could and doing menial jobs for the people living there. One day, the fortune smiled at Will’s father. He met a beautiful rich woman and invented a machine that turned out to be a success an allowed to open business, get even richer. It was also the time when Will was old enough to be abandoned by his father and left alone in their old house.

Will yawned and thought about a beautiful cake that he would never get. Unless he made it himself.

After a quick shower, Will went to the kitchen to make himself birthday breakfast – a sandwich with tomato and cheese had to suffice. And black coffee. Will realised how amazingly quiet it was. He lived in the middle of nowhere, a fact he cherished, with no neighbours for miles and the nearest store in the next town. Thankfully, his father had left him everything they had owned, including the old car. Mister Graham rarely sent any money but it was enough to survive. Will inherited the knowledge and skills with the engines and, much like his father, took any job he got.

He checked the mail. Up until that day, mister Graham had always sent at least a hundred dollars for his son’s birthday. Will’s face fell upon opening the box and finding nothing there. He sighed. Having any expectations was forbidden and he allowed himself to break that rule, hoping that perhaps his eighteenth birthday was significant and that his father would miraculously turn to him, offering him a part of his fortune, apologising or at least saying “Happy birthday”. None of those things happened.

Will looked around and frowned. There was no wind, not the gentlest of gusts. It felt as if there was no air around him. There seemed to be no sun above, the sky was greyish and bleak.

“That’s about right,” Will said to himself and went back to the house. It was summer, middle of school holidays, so he was free to do anything. He had decided not to take any job on his birthday so he could spend the day reading, cleaning and relaxing.

He started by doing the laundry. When the washing machine was set and doing its job, Will dusted the living room and wiped the floors. It took him a couple of hours. As he finally got to settle on the couch, he heard a knock on the front door, which he found odd. He was scared to think that it might be his father so he immediately pushed that thought away and assumed someone from the town needed his help.

As Will approached the door, he felt warmth coming from the other side. It seemed as if summer was outside and would not dare to cross the threshold. Still, the sky remained grey, the sun was absent.

The door opened, revealing a slim tall figure of a man dressed in a checked suit with grey and red accents. The thick tie had a flowery pattern on it and there was a folded handkerchief in the jacket’s pocket. The man was the embodiment of style and elegance. Will blinked a few times at him, dumbstruck by the sudden appearance of an ideal standing at his door. He was certain he was still dreaming. This day was a fake.

“Hello, Will,” the man said, the tone of his voice warm as the air surrounding him. He was smiling and there were sparks in his eyes.

“Who are you? How do you know my name?”

“May I come in?”

The smile did not disappear, not did it fade. The man was looking only at Will, not interested in the interior of the house and not pushing it. Will wondered if he simply walked away if he said “no.”

“Who are you? What do you want? Did my father send you?” Will risked. He was mad at himself for still believing his father was interested in him and for giving a stranger that information.

“In a way, yes. You can call me Hannibal, if that makes it easier for you.”

“Makes what easier?”

“Accepting me.”

“What?”

Will frowned and moved the door slightly, ready to close it anytime. It was some bullshit and Will had had enough of it.

“May I come in? I feel this conversation would go much more smoothly of we sat down.”

There he was, with that polite warm smile again. The man seemed over a decade older than Will but he was handsome and the smile added to his soft look of a gentleman.

“I don’t have to talk to you. I don’t know you. Goodbye.”

Will was about to close the door but found it stuck.

“Goddamn it!”

He checked the hinges and tried to push the door while the man continued to stand there, on the doormat, and watched Will being all flustered and annoyed. The great angry exit failed due to faulty door.

“I may be able to help with that,” the man offered upon watching Will release an exasperated sigh.

“Oh, yeah? How?”

“Well, a bit of oil and it will be alright,” the man suggested.

Will looked at him with narrowed eyes. If he went to look for oil, the stranger could come inside, rob him (although there was nothing there to take, anyway) or even kill him (although he was no worthy target but who knows what’s in a psychopath’s head).

“I have a gun,” Will warned as he made the first step back.

“No, you don’t. You have a baseball bat in the closet and a few knives in the kitchen.”

Will’s eyes widened. The knives in the kitchen were obvious, everyone has them. The baseball bat must have been a lucky guess. Many people has them as well.

“Oh, yeah? What else do I have?” Will hesitated between taking the step backwards and forwards. He stayed in place and put his hands on his waist.

“A father who never loved you.”

The words, although also obvious and stating the fact already known to Will, hurt. The man wasn’t smiling anymore; he was observing how Will crumbled inside himself.

“Get out,” Will whispered. He dragged himself to the kitchen to look for oil, utterly ignoring the fact that the man was still standing on his porch. He couldn’t be bothered.

However, as he returned to take care of the door, he found it closed. Truly, it must have been a dream. Will growled and was about to put away the oil when he heard the man speak.

“I told you I could help you.”

Will looked at the stranger sitting comfortably in his chair.

“What do you want from me? I told you to get lost.”

He wondered what he could use to scare the man and make him go away. There were fishing rods, books on the shelves, plenty of rubbish everywhere but nothing that could pose as a threat or a means of protection.

“Sit down, Will. I’m certain you’ll find what I have to say interesting.”

“How do you know my name?”

Will sat on the couch, uneasy, with his legs spread and elbows resting on his knees.

“I know your father.”

Will gulped. The thoughts of him inheriting some of the money after his deceased father started flowing in his brain. Then, he imagined he had to give up the house because of reasons he did not understand.

“Who are you?”

The man cleared his throat and used the pause to build up the tension which was already so thick Will was tempted to bring the knife and cut it.

“I’m the Devil.”

Will blinked, unamused and unimpressed. The day was absurd. With every second it appeared more and more like a dream.

“Sorry, not interested in your religious bullshit. But I see you people are getting creative.”

Will rubbed his thighs and was ready to stand up but he found himself unable to. It was almost as if some strange force held him down.

“Have you ever heard people say things like “you may not believe in the devil but he believes in you”?”

“Plenty of times,” Will’s accent was emphasised now that he got truly annoyed and angry. He bared his teeth and attempted to stand up again to no avail.

“Well, I believe in you, Will.”

Suddenly, Will’s whole body was paralysed. He was sitting down, hands on his knees, unable to move. Only his eyes were circling in his eyeholes, looking around. A scream got stuck in his throat as he could not open his mouth.

“Let me say my piece,” the man asked. The sparks in his eyes faded slightly and his voice got even softer. Yet, the air seemed to absorb the warmth emitted by the stranger and Will felt the sudden wave of heat hitting him straight in the face. “When your father learnt that you’d be born, he summoned me. He was desperate, reckless and, between you and me, not the smartest man on earth. But he believed in me. He asked me for a better life, for money, for a more beautiful woman than your mother.”

Will felt a tongue of fire smacking his eyes. Tears were about to be shed.

“I was, of course, ready to make all his dreams and wishes come true. But I had to ask him something in return, didn’t I?”

And there it was. Will assumed that, given what the man was telling him was, in fact, true, the house was no longer his. Still, it was a small price for a palace mister Graham and his wife lived in, not to mention the fortune and luck and… Will reshaped his way of thinking. The Devil asked for people’s souls rather than petty old houses. The thought of Will’s father being dead and in hell quite young because he had wanted a palace and a trophy wife seemed acutely stupid but, as the Devil said, Will’s father was not the smartest man on earth.

“Oh, no. I know what you’re thinking,” the man said and Will was certain he would be paralysed without any help because the words sounded strangely literal. “You’re right, your father did promise me a soul. But it wasn’t his own.”

That was a nightmare, rather than a dream. Will whimpered, confined in his immobile body. How could anyone sell someone else’s soul?

“You are right,” the man answered, again creepily revealing he could read Will’s mind, “I did not agree to the deal. I couldn’t take the soul of the man’s unborn son.”

Will remained silent and tried to shush his brain, at least for a moment. He looked blankly at the man opposite him and waited.

“But a few years later, the father summoned me again. He showed me his child and knelt before me. It was such a lovely sight. I was barely able to refrain myself from agreeing to the deal.”

Will wanted to say something but no words came out of his mouth, only muffled sounds. He closed his eyes, resigned. Then, he felt his body fall forwards, no longer supported and kept in his paralysed body.

“Forgive my methods but I had to outline the story for you and you didn’t want to listen,” the man said and watched Will regain his composure. “Shall I continue?”

Will only nodded.

“I promised to return when, and if, I found his offer satisfying.”

“I won’t give you my soul,” Will announced and gritted his teeth.

“Oh, that’s already happened, my dear boy. You soul was mine the day your father met his lovely wife. We came to a mutual agreement.”

“What? How? NO!”

Will could not believe his soul was sold for someone else to live happily ever after. The nightmare just became unbearable and Will wondered how he could make himself wake up.

“I’m afraid that’s the case. Your soul, as of your eighteenth birthday, belongs to me.”

Will rushed to the bathroom and knelt by the toilet; yet, nothing came out. He was sick to his stomach but couldn’t do anything about it. He went to the kitchen to look for some painkillers or some drops. As he swallowed two pills and washed them down with water, the man remained in the chair in the living room. Will leant against the counter and took deep breaths.

He thought about the ways he could make himself wake up from that horrible nightmare. Pinching seemed like a good idea, so Will caught the skin on his forearm with his nails and squeezed. Nothing. He slapped himself in the face: one cheek, then the other one. Nothing.

“You’re not asleep, Will. You’re dead.”

The voice that reached Will’s ears was stone cold and indifferent.

“What?” Will muttered under his breath. He grabbed a knife, held it close to his wrist, and appeared in front of the man like that.

“What do you intend to do? You can’t kill yourself. You’re in a limbo.”

“What?” Will whined, confused and terrified.

The man stood up and approached Will, who outstretched his arm and pointed the knife at the stranger.

“You can’t kill me, either,” the man said, opening his arms wide. “Come, I’ll show you.”

Will looked at the man, blinking rapidly and trying to remember if there was anything that could have made him hallucinate.

“Come on. Do not let the Devil wait for you.”

With those words, the smile on the man’s face reappeared, wider and warmer than ever before. Will felt the heat on his face again and found himself compelled to follow the man.

The door opened on its own, forcing Will’s mouth to open. The stranger walked outside and stopped on the porch, beckoning Will to stand next to him. They were looking at the empty fields around the house, the grey sky and the few trees and bushes, with not even one leaf brushed by the wind.

Then, suddenly, the sky became blue like the ocean and the sun appeared out of nowhere, shining brightly but offering no warmth. The only heat was radiating from the man next to Will.

“What car would you like to have? No, don’t tell me. Let me…”

A red Porsche convertible magically appeared by the house and Will had to close his eyes for a while before he could open them and believe what was happening.

“Shall we?” the impeccably dressed man asked and outstretched his hand in the direction of the car. Only then did Will notice unusually long for a man fingernails painted black. How could he have missed that?

He took the first hesitant step towards the car, then looked at the stranger again.

“The keys are inside. Let’s go,” the man encouraged but Will had to pinch himself again. When he didn’t wake up, he jumped off the few stairs and stopped a mere inch away from the car.

“It’s yours,” the man reassured and opened the passenger’s door to sit by the driver. Will kept gaping at the car and the man who somehow was able to pull off a trick like that.

Very slowly, Will opened the door and sat in the driver’s seat. He caught the whiff of the brand new car with the brand new leather. The engine started by itself but it was so silent Will could barely hear it was already on.

“Let’s go,” the man exclaimed enthusiastically.

“Where?” Will was still overwhelmed and his voice was breaking.

“Where the road leads us,” the man winked and grasped Will’s right hand to put it on the gear stick. Right then, Will felt fire flow through his own body. His blood boiled, his skin burned. Sparks danced in his eyes.

Will screamed and withdrew his hand, already missing the heat.

“What the hell?”

The man in the passenger’s seat chuckled and looked away.

Will pressed the gas pedal and drove away from his house. It was mere meters away when he realised the road was not the one he remembered. It led him straight, then turned right; there were no crossroads and nothing seemed right. As he was driving straight for a good mile, a lake appeared on his left. The scenery had changed completely.

There were no people around, which was the only thing that Will counted as real. The rest continued to be a dream.

“Where are we going?” Will asked again, himself more than the man.

“You’ll see.”

After a few minutes of driving straight ahead, Will noticed a huge mansion on his left.

“Ah, we’re here,” the man cheered, “Stop by that building.”

Will did as he was told and parked by the enormous house. The man got out of the car and turned to Will.

“Well?”

“Well what?” Will asked, still sitting in the car.

“Do you like it?”

“Sure, I like it. It’s a beautiful house.”

“It’s yours, then.”

“What?”

“Will you, please, stop asking “what” and get out of the car?”

Baffled and a little scared, Will obeyed. He stared at the mansion and wondered if he would have sold his or someone else’s soul for such a house. Was it really worth it?

“Stop bothering yourself with that question and follow me inside.”

The interior was even more stunning then the outside part. The furniture seemed handmade, the flowers freshly picked, the paintings by the hand of the most famous and talented people. It was a palace, much more breath-taking than the one belonging to Will’s father.

“Come, let’s take a look inside the wardrobe.”

Will took careful steps behind the man who claimed to be the Devil himself. Factually, the handsome man proved more than on one occasion that he could read Will’s mind. There was strange heat radiating from him and he made the Porsche magically appear in front of Will’s house. He talked about selling souls but appeared overall nice and not at all devilish.

Will expected the man to comment on his last thoughts but was left with silence.

The men entered a spacious closet full of clothes, shoes and other accessories.

“You can choose whatever you like. I’ll wait in the living room while you change.”

As the door closed behind the man, Will was left all alone in the big room and the expensive-smelling clothes. He browsed the racks and found multiple suits in various colours and patterns, tens of shirts, many different pairs of jeans, what seemed to be a hundred ties, beautiful leather shoes and so much more. Will wanted to laugh at the fact that the only thing the wardrobe was lacking was simplicity. Every item must have cost a fortune, everything was of a famous brand.

Will touched almost every piece of fabric and then left the closet. He found the man sitting in a chair in the living room, waiting. As he saw Will still in his own clothes, he frowned.

“Don’t you like the clothes?”

Will stepped closer and sat opposite the man, trying to read him. The silence was broken by the man’s cordial smile and a warm rich voice that followed.

“Yes, I am the Devil. Yes, you are truly dead and your soul belongs to me. You are in a limbo, an empty space for the lost souls. I put you here to prepare you before I take you to Hell. There is no way out of this situation but…”

Sparks appeared in Will’s eyes. He was aware of how stupid he was to be hopeful but he couldn’t help it.

“I will make you an offer, one that you have to consider and until you give me an answer, you’ll stay here.”

Will nodded, indicating he was listening.

“There are two things. First, I can promise you to take your father’s soul to Hell for what he’s done to you, if that’s what you wish. It won’t change anything for you, you won’t go back, won’t return to the world of the living. And secondly, I find myself in need of a partner down in Hell. There are more and more souls every second and you can imagine how busy they make me. So I offer you partnership.”

Will rubbed his thighs gently and then clutched onto his knees. When would this dream end? Or was he in a coma and there was no way of knowing if he would wake up ever again?

“I’ll go now, give you some time to think. In the meantime, whatever you think of, whatever you imagine, will appear for you. This is your private pit in the limbo. It’s all yours.”

Will remained silent, speechless. He looked away and stared blankly at the wall on his right.

“Do you have any more questions?” the man asked.

“What happens to me in Hell?”

The man only sighed and left the house. Will was all alone yet again, this time in a much more pleasant environment.

 

Time seemed to stop. Will observed different clocks as they measured the hours but the hands simply looked as if they dragged and did not move at all, eventually. The sky remained blue, the sun still up there. Will was not even a little bit tired. He didn’t need to go to the toilet, didn’t need to eat or sleep. He felt empty inside, which, he assumed, might have been close to the truth.

He wondered how much time he had before the Devil returned. Could he not give him any answer and stay here? After some time spent in the living room, Will decided to explore the rest of the house. It was enormous, with multiple bathrooms, a huge dining room, a few bedrooms and large backyard. There was also another floor and a set of stairs leading to the attic. On the first floor, it turned out that some of the rooms are empty. He moved from one door to another and finally stopped at the threshold of a small study, filled only with books.

Will had always been busy with work and trying to make a living so he only had some spare time in the evenings or at night. Now, he imagined, he could sit and read for the rest of the eternity. He grabbed the first book and wanted to go to the living room, where there was a chair, but a thought haunted him. He closed his eyes and imagined a comfy chair with dark green upholstery. His mouth hung open when, upon opening his eyes, he saw that very chair standing in the centre of the room.

“This is not happening…”

Will’s knees were weak and could barely support him. He assumed that it was the sign that he was not yet lost. But it seemed as if his mind was on its track to go mad.

Will circled the chair and touched it on all sides to check if it was real, if anything there was. He sat in it and waited, probably for it to collapse or for him to wake up. Nothing happened.

He started reading the book and after two chapters found it boring so he reached for another one. Time flied, even though it seemingly stopped. Will managed to finish two, skim through three and abandon after two chapters five books before he heard a knock at the door.

He went downstairs, slowly, carefully, and approached the front door. He realised his hands were shaking but his heartbeat was not faster than usual. Will found that odd and as he leant against the door, he placed both his palms over his chest to feel his heart. He took deep and slow breaths and had to cover his mouth not to scream when he felt nothing under his palm. There was no heartbeat, no rhythmical rumble, no drumming.

Suddenly, Will heard his name being whispered on the other side of the door. He knew that voice.

“I don’t have a heartbeat,” Will complained through the wooden barrier.

“Of course you don’t. You’re not alive, Will.”

“I feel alive enough.”

There was a pause. No response, no answers, no questions. Will assumed the man walked away, and sat down on the floor by the door. What was he supposed to do now?

“Let me in, Will.”

Will jumped up, surprised by the man’s presence on the other side.

“Here, you’re all by yourself. I know that’s the life you’re used to but I offer you a glimpse at what awaits you once you accept my offer. Do you want a taste?”

Will shook his head on the other side and asked himself “what?” over and over. He had always seen himself as designed to lead a solitary life, with occasional visits from neighbours to offer him a small job. That the man had already returned to him was odd.

“Let me take you somewhere,” the Devil proposed.

Will remembered an old song which he was aware would stuck to him now.

“Where this time?”

“I feel like making it another surprise.”

In all the chaos and confusion Will found himself smile, for the first time that day. He suddenly remembered that it was his birthday. It was the one day in a year he had allowed himself to enjoy. Before all the mess happened.

The door opened and Will saw the handsome man in his perfectly tailored suit complemented with a warm wide smile. Immediately, Will felt the heat wave hit his skin. He had yet to get used to the man’s aura of warmth.

“Let’s go.”

Will passed the man and got into the car on the passenger’s side. He was compelled to fasten the seatbelt and was already reaching for it when he remembered that he was, supposedly, already dead.

The man took the seat next to him and did not bother with the seatbelt, either. He did not bother to start the engine or press any of the pedals. Instead, he reached for one of Will’s hands.

In a blink of an eye, the two men were standing by the statue of Christ the Redeemer in Rio de Janeiro. Will gaped at the city down below with its lights on, making the night sky sapphire. The view was magnificent.

“Is this real?”

“Of course it’s real. It’s what’s waiting for you once you accept me.”

Will had difficulties with processing what the man meant by “accepting,” especially with the breath-taking sight before his eyes.

“So are we back on earth? Am I no longer in the limbo?”

“Yes, we are on earth. We can visit anytime we want.”

“Can people see us?” Will asked like a child ready to discover the world. There was quite a long list of things he wanted to know and he had to start somewhere.

“Of course they can. We are here, aren’t we?”

“I don’t know.”

Will touched his own skin, his old inadequate clothes. He felt the fabric under his fingertips and the short soft hair on his forearms.

“The only rule is you can’t meet people that know you. You are dead, remember,” the Devil warned.

Will sighed upon realising that this was his reality now: he could make anything appear out of nowhere, could visit different places on earth and he could walk among the living but not as the living person himself.

“How?”

“Heart attack.”

Will snorted. So young, not at all promising, but young and maybe…Was there any future for him?

“Definitely not as great as the one you can have with me,” the man interrupted Will’s thoughts.

“You haven’t answered my question. What happens to me in Hell?”

“If you join me,” the Devil spread his arms, “this is what awaits you. Infinity. Eternity. With all the books, all the movies, all the knowledge to gain, all the experiences otherwise impossible to have. With me, you will finally live a life with no limitations.”

“And if I say no?”

Suddenly, Will realised he hadn’t even thought of Heaven. If Hell was real, then, surely, so was Heaven and God and the angels by his side. If the Devil could offer him eternity and power, how could God beat him?

“What else do you want? Is there more to ask than everything?” the Devil read Will’s mind again.

“You’re asking me to consider a long-term commitment. Don’t you think I deserve to at least know other options?”

“You can go back to your limbo if you want.”

“I just find it impossible for the Devil to be so generous. You’re supposed to be evil,” Will insisted.

Suddenly, the sight before Will’s eyes were the walls of his old house. He was alone in his living room. Sighing, he lay on the couch and immersed himself in daydreaming. He wondered if his father mourned him and if anyone attended his funeral. Then, he started considering the Devil’s offer. It seemed obvious that he would be betrayed, that the Devil tempted him to join the dark side but once he’d agree, he’d be doomed, lost. Still, his soul already belonged to the Dark Lord. Could there be something worse? What truly awaited him in Hell? Why the Devil refused to answer him that one question? And why did he ask to be called Hannibal the first time they met?

Time flied again without moving at all. Will found himself bored. He did not need to eat, clean, go to work or sleep. He imagined a pile of books and started reading them. He looked for information about the Devil. How come the man appeared nice? Was all the population wrong?

Then, Will imagined a garden. He took care of the flowers, picked some of them and placed them in a beautiful vase he created in his mind. He could get used to that life. What bothered him was the constant day, with cloudless sky. He closed his eyes and, as he opened them, it was night. A concentration of stars above Will’s head made him think of all the souls and wonder if the Devil offered them the same treatment. Why was he fighting for Will so fiercely?

“I have your soul but I do not have your mind.”

Will looked to his right and squirmed on the garden swing. The Devil had the annoying tendency to appear out of nowhere with no former warning.

“I see you made use of your new abilities,” the Devil remarked.

“Why did you tell me to call you Hannibal?”

The Devil stood beside the swing and pointed at it, looking at Will, silently asking permission to have a seat next to him. Will nodded and waited for the answer.

“I have many names. And all of them are associated with evil.”

“Are you not evil?”

The Devil laughed.

“Of course I am. I am pure evil. I am also power. I am temptation. I am pleasure. I am all the things you desire but have been taught to resist.”

“Then what is God?”

“He’s the opposite. He is goodness and kindness and joy.”

“Are you not kind?”

“What do you think I do with the souls that enter my kingdom?”

“But you seem kind to me.”

The Devil looked right into Will’s eyes. The heat radiated from him and he had sparks instead of pupils. Will was both terrified and excited, and somehow expected the Devil to scold him or prove him wrong. Yet, nothing happened. Silence surrounded them until the Devil spoke.

“Come with me. Share the eternity with me. I don’t want to see your potential go to waste.”

Will ran his hand through his hair and tried to retain emptiness in his mind. He didn’t want to think of an answer for the Devil to know before he said it. But the decision was made. Will was only testing the Devil’s patience.

“So should I call you Hannibal? Is that what you want? To be called an earthly name?”

“I want us to be equals.”

“Is that even possible?”

“It will be. Soon.”

“Fine. Alright. I have nothing to lose, do I?”

The Devil smiled, baring his sharp teeth, and extended his hand for Will to shake.

“Is that how you make the deal with the Devil?”

“No, but I figured it would pose as a great distraction.”

Will pressed his palm to the Devil’s and felt a burning sensation. It was almost as if his hand was being absorbed by the hellish fire. At the same time, he felt his other palm being cut and then, there was blackness…


	2. Won

Will opened his eyes to see a marvellous living room, filled with masterpieces he had seen in the albums presenting lost or destroyed pieces of art and architecture. Will wondered if he’d find Atlantis there, too. He spotted an odd instrument similar to the piano standing by the wall and felt compelled to approach it. His fingers ghosted over the keys but he would not dare to press any.

“A harpsichord,” came the explanation out of nowhere.

“Must you do that every time?”

As Will looked up to face the Devil, he found the man smiling.

“Truly, I’m not used to having company,” the Devil admitted.

“That’s alright, me neither.”

The Devil took a few steps towards Will.

“Would you like a tour?”

Will nodded and watched the Devil hesitate for a split second. The man’s eyes were wandering, gently caressing Will’s face, which didn’t make Will uncomfortable on its own but, accompanied by implications of the Devil’s motivations, offered uneasiness.

The men left the room and entered a long, seemingly never-ending corridor. The detail that caught Will’s attention was that there were no doors on either side.

“Where does it lead?”

“Wherever you need.” The Devil stopped by the wall on his left. “I treat every soul individually. But, as you can imagine, there are so many of them, I had to divide them into groups. Who do you want to see first?”

“You mean, like, you have murderers in one room, rapists in another etc.?”

“Something like that, yes.”

“Show me what you do with the murderers.”

The Devil seemed glad. He reached for Will’s hand and placed it on the wall.

“There used to be a pair of door here. But I had intruders and had to cover the entrance. Now, think of any dead murderer.”

Somehow, the first image in Will’s head was the sketch of the Zodiac Killer. He felt the doorknob under his fingers and pulled it. Hannibal invited Will inside by outstretching his arm, then followed him.

The room was dark and there were narrow high boxes on both sides, with transparent walls through which Will could see the people inside. In front of many boxes there were various items: there was a glass of water, a pile of money, a riffle, even a stripper.

“What does it all mean?”

The Devil stopped by the glass of water and looked at the man in the box to which it was assigned. The man’s skin appeared like a sheet of old crumpled paper.

“He craves something to drink. He’s getting dry, his throat burns, his organs die inside. He cannot die so he suffers.”

“But…”

“Yes?”

“We’re only souls. How can our bodies suffer here? I thought…”

The Devil smiled.

“It’s more complicated than that. And you are right – it’s not the body that suffers. But it’s easier to understand when you illustrate it like that.”

The men moved forward, along the many boxes, many items. Will could almost taste the sweetness of punishment. For him, it was justice finally coming to life. On earth, he had seen corruption, resentment, dishonesty, and no one had ever done anything about it. Only some people were held responsible. Here, it seemed like they finally got what they deserved.

“Are there more people here like me?”

“You mean people who didn’t sign up for the eternity with me?”

Will only gave the Devil a particular look. He still saw himself as betrayed and sold to the Devil for something so insignificant and incomparable as money. Oh, and the illusion of love.

“You are a very special case, Will.”

“Why? Why did you agree to that?”

“I think it was you who agreed.”

“And I’m still not entirely sure why I did that. But why offer me partnership in the first place? Aren’t you taking pleasure in watching these poor souls suffer?”

“I do.”

“Then-”

“I’ll tell you later. Now, let us go further.”

“I feel like-”

“Dante. I know,” the Devil interrupted.

Will rolled his eyes and went on. He watched the people in the boxes and wondered what would be in front of his if he got there. Then, he wondered how other souls were treated. There must have been people who committed lighter sins. There were also the greatest sinners of all time.

“You’re thinking too loudly,” the Devil remarked.

“Can you read everyone’s mind?”

“Yes,” was the brief and telling answer.

Will watched as the Devil, who wished to be called an earthly name, turned and took a few steps in the opposite direction. Upon looking over his shoulder, Will frowned as spotted the wall and the door which should have been many meters away.

“You return the way you entered,” the Devil explained.

“But-”

“I think we’ve seen enough here.”

They exited the room and found themselves in the long corridor again.

“Some – notorious and infamous – inmates have their own pit. It’s a luxury no one is really proud of or excited about.”

“Like Hitler?”

“Or Judas. I keep them separate and you only have to think of their names for the door to their pits to appear.”

“Noted.”

Will wanted to keep it light. No need to be grave when the atmosphere about the whole place was already deadly.

“So what’s my role?”

The Devil smiled.

“Think of yourself. Think of a place you’d want to be. The door will always lead you wherever you want to go.”

A pair of mahogany door appeared in the wall and Will reached for the handle. Before he pulled, he looked at the Devil by his side.

“Have I just invented my own pit?”

“We’re partners, Will,” the Devil reached for Will’s hand and showed him the scar on his palm. “I’m evil but I don’t betray. I can’t.”

“A good evil, then.”

Will opened the door and entered a huge study, with shelves and cabinets filled with books and small trinkets. There were a few armchairs and a long sofa. By the wall, there was a piano and a guitar. Opposite the sofa, there was an enormous TV and gaming equipment. There was also another door in the corner.

“Where does it lead?” the Devil asked.

“It’s a secret.”

“Good.”

The Devil took a look around and seemed impressed. He browsed through the books on a shelf with an intense expression on his face. Then, he turned, searched for something that seemed to be missing, and, in a blink of an eye, there was a high black box standing by the wall, with a crimson bow on the lid.

“What’s that?” Will asked, amused, and approached the box.

“A welcome gift. You may open it.”

Will’s eyebrows rose as he saw a magnificent navy blue suit and an ivory shirt with an abstract pattern attached to it. No tie, no unnecessary accessories.

“Just imagine yourself wearing it,” the Devil prompted.

Will did as he was told and, as he opened his eyes, he found himself dressed in the suit, while his old clothes disappeared along with the box.  

“Now, you are ready,” the Devil announced, pleased with what he was seeing.

“For what?”

Will felt the heat emitted by the Devil and felt it increase. The invisible tongues of fire swished in the air.

“Your first temptation.”

Hannibal grabbed Will’s hand and led him out of the room. The door to it disappeared behind them. Then, a new pair of door presented itself in the wall.

“Where are we going?” Will asked, confused and excited.

“ _You_ are going to Las Vegas. It’s the easiest place on earth to be tempted and yet, there is a girl there right now who just needs a little push.”

Before Will managed to ask more questions, he was gently shoved into the abyss behind the door.

 

The wallpaper had exotic flowers on it, the smell was some cheap sweet perfume. Will looked around and found no one in the corridor. Moving on, he entered a lobby and saw a casino just was a stone’s throw away. A bright pink neon sign along with strobe lights invited the guests in as soon as they exited the hotel. Will decided to accept the invitation, too. He assumed he had been sent on a mission.

Upon stepping inside, Will noticed that everyone apart from him seemed enchanted: people were walking around, carrying drinks and chips, utterly absorbed by the atmosphere of the place. Plenty of girls, wearing short dresses with sequins, behaved much like security, constantly checking up on the quests and making sure everyone is engaged one way or another.

The machines were all occupied, as well as most of the tables. Will noticed how a female croupier shuffled a deck, then performed some tricks with the cards, to finally deal them out. The way her hands worked appeared fascinating to Will. For a moment, he missed being alive and working. Surprisingly, he missed the smell of oil and his old car as he started the engine. He missed the smell of gasoline.

Here, engulfed in the sickly sweet, almost maddening, scent, Will felt more lonely and alien than when he used to hide from the whole world. He never quite belonged, but when he was alone in his house which he partly hated, he thought there was a place on earth where he felt safe. Not anymore.

He looked around, trying to find the girl who didn’t have fun at a casino. Will imagined that would be an easy task since everyone seemed occupied and there was not one person who didn’t belong. Except from him, perhaps, as he did not belong anywhere anymore.

Will walked around the place to finally spot a young woman sitting on the floor between two tables. He approached her and only when he was a mere meter away did he notice she had been crying. He hesitated to speak to her, not knowing the cause of her distress. There were all sorts of reasons why a pretty girl would cry in the middle of the casino. It felt wrong to Will to tempt her and force her to have fun when evidently something bad had happened.

“Can you help me?”

Will looked at the girl with a surprised expression and extended his arm so she could stand up from the floor. When she did, he noticed her red puffy eyes and a bit smudged mascara around her eyes. The ruined makeup didn’t really spoil her appearance; Will could still see that she was beautiful.

“Thank you.”

“No problem.”

She stared at him and sniffled. He thought of a tissue and when he reached inside his pocket, he found one. He offered it to the girl, who smiled at him.

“My saviour.”

He raised one corner of his mouth in a half-smile.

“Could you help me find my room? I need to call my mom.”

“Sure. Are you staying in the hotel across the street?”

She nodded, sniffled and grabbed Will’s hand. As they left the casino and the neon sign shone on their backs, Will realised he might have just failed. Instead of inviting the girl to play some more and most probably lose some more money, he was now seeing her off, leading her to a safe bay in the chaos that was the entirety of Las Vegas.

“What’s the room’s number?”

“216,” the girl answered and walked forward. It seemed she knew exactly where she was going.

Then, at the corner, she must have realised she behaved suspiciously, because she stopped and looked around.

“I don’t remember the way.”

Will offered to split and examine the floor faster that way but the girl clung to him and said she wouldn’t want to get lost or lose her saviour. They turned right and kept looking for a number 216 on the doors. It turned out that there were signs with the number range on the walls. 190-200, 200-210, 210-220.

“Here,” Will pointed at the sign and the girl immediately rushed in its direction.

They quickly noticed that the even numbers were on their right. They stopped by the right door and Will wanted to say goodbye when he realised he was still holding hands with the girl. She had an advantage and used it by pulling Will closer to kiss him.

She tasted like liquor and salt. Her lips were soft and plump from crying. Will thought that one kiss would do no harm so he surrendered. Then, she opened her mouth, entwining their tongues together. Will felt like a fish caught on the hook. He heard a beep and the door being open. She pulled him inside without breaking the kiss. Will didn’t even need to take a breath, which appeared suspicious. I’m dead, he thought.

With that, he put his hands on her shoulder and shoved her away. Her expression was that of disappointment and hurt.

“You don’t know me,” he tried to make up an explanation that would omit the fact that he was dead.

“I don’t have to.”

“I don’t want this,” he desperately wanted to push her away but the redness of his cheeks and the slight bulge in his pants gave him away. She smiled at him knowingly and took a step closer towards him.

“You don’t want this. You’re sad, desperate, lonely. It’s not what you need right now.”

“It’s exactly what I need right now,” she assured and kissed him again.

He didn’t find the strength to resist this time. Her kisses became more violent, seemingly reaching deep inside his throat. Will grasped the hem of her blouse and pulled it up, throwing it in a corner of the room. His hands roamed her back and then unclasped her bra. The girl reached for his belt.

Blackness engulfed him, then light. Then, he was back in his imaginary room in Hell and the Devil was standing in front of him.

“What?” Will looked at the handsome man with wide eyes.

“You succeeded. I brought you back.”

“I didn’t…”

“Temptation has different forms,” the Devil remarked.

The thought of being deceived struck Will. Then, he considered what had actually happened. He hadn’t been told to make the girl play in the casino or lose money. He was simply supposed to tempt. The way he was supposed to do that was not specified. He did not fail, after all.

“So what, am I your disciple now?”

“Do you want to be?”

“I thought I had already agreed to that.”

“Not quite yet.”

“I feel like you’re leading me by the nose and will never allow me closure.”

The Devil smiled.

“I know there is still something bothering you. Until we clear that out, you can’t be free to join me.”

Will thought for a moment about the questions he still had as he looked at the man.

“Alright. Why do you want me to be your partner?”

“That’s not it. I already told you that I need-”

“Someone to help you, I know. But I meant, why do you want _me_ to be your partner? I was never a bully, a kind of person who would really enjoy Hell.”

“This sort of people is punished in Hell, not celebrating it. You, on the other hand, was never meant to get here.”

“Well, I can’t say I disagree. But it was you who agreed to my father’s proposal.”

“Yes. And I broke a lot of rules by doing so. Ever since your father summoned me for the first time, I had been watching you. I was curious if he’d try to give you up again. I was curious what kind of person you’d grow up to be.”

“Not the kind to go to Hell, that’s for sure. I mean I’m no angel but-”

“I had grown fond of you. You can imagine how lonely it gets here – the prospect of eternity with no one to open up to.”

Will blinked. He had imagined the Devil had great fun on earth: tempting people, having sex with them, making their lives miserable, punishing those in Hell, making their afterlives miserable.

“Don’t get me wrong, I love that. I love being myself. I love being evil” the Devil assured, reminding Will that he could read minds. “And I have a reputation for that.”

“Is it the good evil side talking now?”

The Devil winced and shook his head gently.

“Not really. I shouldn’t have agreed to take your soul. It was against the rules. But I gave in to temptation.”

Will could not help chuckling.

“I found a loophole and promised to wait until you were eighteen. I literally had to go a long way to make you die and get to the limbo. You know the story from there, more or less.”

“More or less?” Will inquired.

“Well, I did what I can do best. I tempted you. I had a deal that I would have you alone for a while, before someone from the rival side would come. I had to sway you into joining _my_ kingdom.”

“So I had another choice?” Will’s eyes were wide of astonishment. He wasn’t told the whole truth and now it was probably too late to change his decision.

“Yes.”

A moment of silence followed. Will tried to retain his mind a blank space. He reached for the Devil then and grabbed him by the back of the neck.

“You are just the worst.”

A smile appeared on both men’s faces. Will remembered the song of the opposite title, which made him bare his teeth in a grin.

“Are you ready to become my disciple?”

“Yes…Hannibal. Should I continue calling you that?”

“Yes, dear Will.”

The Devil brought their faces closer. Will felt the immense, overwhelming heat radiating from the ruler of Hell. Then, as if hypnotised, he closed the distance between them in a kiss that sealed the deal. The Devil’s mouth was an abyss – with no limits, no edges, only searing heat. Will explored the depths, moaning and searching for something to grasp. Suddenly, he felt the tongue of fire smack his own. Fever seemed to absorb Will’s whole body, as his blood boiled, his veins burned under his skin. The tongue of fire wrapped itself around Will’s own, and pulled. The kiss was truly devouring.

Will felt the fire being passed onto him and the power fill his mind. Then, as if after the climax, peace and quiet surrounded Will’s existence. The Devil withdrew his tongue and broke the kiss but remained pressed closely to Will. Their breaths mixed, their eyes opened. Will moved his hand on the Devil’s neck higher to stroke the man’s hair.

“Will I be able to read your mind now, too?” he whispered.

The Devil narrowed his eyes, feigning to be played out in his own game.

 _Let’s find out, shall we?_ Will heard in his own head.


End file.
